Published on Thursday, May 5, 2016 by Kathy McCabe The Italian government recently announced it will allocate 1 billion euros to 33 sites around the country, with the largest sum of 70 million euros going toward restoration of a stone jail built in 1795 on the island of Santo Stefano in the Tyrrhenian Sea (pictured). Mussolini’s fascist regime sent political prisoners to the jail before it closed in 1965, and it has...

Published on Friday, April 22, 2016 by Kathy McCabe Perhaps you’ve traveled to the same beloved spot in Italy one too many times and need a change; perhaps you’re looking for something completely new and different; perhaps your favorite  hotel is full. In any of these scenarios, we suggest you consider a trip to the Alto Adige region, known as Südtirol (South Tyrol) to the Austrians just a few meters on the other...

Published on Saturday, April 2, 2016 by Kathy McCabe The Basilica di Santa Maria Antiqua has had its light hidden under a bushel for quite some time—through no fault of its custodians. The “Sistine Chapel of the early Middle Ages,” as experts now refer to it, was buried in 847 AD by an earthquake, but has finally be restored. The sixth-century Santa Maria Antiqua fresco-laden interior, indicative of the late E...

Published on Wednesday, March 30, 2016 by Kathy McCabe Tuscany-based start-up Travel Appeal conducted a 2015 survey and analysis of 20 of Italy’s largest national museums—and number one museum in the country may surprise you. Using a complex algorithm that monitored visitor comments on sites including Facebook and TripAdvisor, Travel Appeal found that the museum with the highest number of positive comments was the Na...

Published on Tuesday, March 22, 2016 by Kathy McCabe A new book from authors and culinary writers Leslie Pariseau and Talia Baiocchi, titled Spritz: Italy’s Most Iconic Aperitivo Cocktail, with Recipes, aims to highlight the fizzy side of Italian bar culture by exploring the history of and creative variations on the spritz cocktail. "The spritz’s popularity is symbolic of a pendulum shift away from the how-much-b...

Published on Friday, March 18, 2016 by Kathy McCabe Florence’s famous Vasari Corridor, which connects the Palazzo Pitti to the Palazzo Vecchio, is currently only accessible through private tours. However, that may change, says the director of the Uffizi, Eike Schmidt, who hopes to open the corridor to the public. “My aim is to eliminate privileges and offer the possibility, not the obligation, of passing through...

Published on Sunday, March 13, 2016 by Kathy McCabe Planning your wedding? Why not get married in Italy? That's what many people are choosing to do. According to Italian news agency ANSA, Italy’s marriage tourism industry grew to a 400€ million industry in 2015. Italy is now the second-most coveted wedding destination in the world after the tropical locale of Hawaii.  Foreigners are choosing to marry in the count...

Published on Wednesday, March 9, 2016 by Kathy McCabe At the suggestion of the Italian government, the country’s UNESCO heritage commission plans to propose that the art of making Neapolitan pizza be included on the United Nations’ Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list. The proposal would officially distinguish Neapolitan pizza from other world-famous styles of pizza such as New York-style and Chicago-style...

Published on Friday, February 26, 2016 by Kathy McCabe Perillo Tours is the leader in escorted tours to Italy, but did you know that Perillo also plans custom Italy travel through its sister company ItalyVacations.com? Whether you want a romantic getaway in one of Italy's great cities - Venice, Rome, Florence - or a fully customized villa vacation for the whole family - grand kids too, with day trips and more. Anything y...

Published on Monday, February 15, 2016 by Kathy McCabe The museum at Florence’s Misericordia – which originally opened in 2005 – reopened after two years of renovation. The new museum chronicles nearly 800 years of the charitable institution’s history with 14 rooms of art, everyday items, furniture and manuscripts. Among prominent paintings on display are St. Jerome the Penitent by Pietro Annigoni, St. John the Ba...